Laufer sworn in as Coatesville's new police chief

COATESVILLE — The city’s search for a permanent leader of its police department concluded Monday as former state police Maj. John Laufer was sworn in as police chief.

The 26-year veteran of the Pennsylvania State Police was joined by his wife and two daughters as he took the oath of office before an enthusiastic crowd. About 30 police officers, state troopers, and `other members of the law enforcement community crowded in to witness the ceremony led by Magisterial District Judge Grover Koon.

After taking his oath of office Laufer addressed the crowd and first asked for prayers and thoughts for Stephen Johnson, who was sworn in as chief in December but resigned due to illness.

“I’d like to remind us all to keep in our thoughts and prayers Stephen Johnson and his family as he begins his battle with cancer,” Laufer said. “Chief Johnson never got the opportunity to truly serve the citizens of Coatesville, but no doubt he would have been a fine chief and he would have enjoyed working for the city and doing what he felt was right for the citizens of Coatesville.”

Laufer’s hiring comes more than six months after former chief Julius Canale left the department in July. Following Canale’s retirement, a search committee was formed to identify and evaluate candidates to permanently fill the position.

The search committee, led by former Caln police officer and PECO Energy executive Greg Cary, originally identified Laufer as the top candidate for the job last summer. Laufer attended a city council meeting in September when it was widely expected that he would be approved as chief, but only four council members were present for the decision that required four affirmative votes to pass. Councilwoman C. Arvilla Hunt voted no, citing budget concerns, and Laufer’s hiring fell one vote short.

Laufer noted lightly that Monday’s appearance was not his first inside city council’s chambers.

“If you want to make god laugh, tell him your plans,” Laufer said. “The Lord works in mysterious ways, which has brought me back here for a second time.”

Laufer thanked those that supported him throughout the process, his family and law enforcement colleagues, and city council for last week’s vote of approval.

“I want to thank you for the vote last Monday,” he said, referring to last week’s unanimous vote to approve the hiring. “I think that’s important for the city, and I think it’s important for the police department to see that vote moving forward as we work together to tackle some of these tough issues that are currently facing the city.”

Laufer said he would work with council to address the city’s crime and budget problems, and spoke to residents directly about his intention to form a strong partnership with the community.

“Citizens of Coatesville, I like to think of this as the beginning of a partnership,” Laufer said while quoting Sir Robert Peel, an early 19th-century British statesmen who is considered a father of the modern theory on community policing. “The police are the public, and the public are the police. It’s a true partnership.”

Laufer said the theory of community policing could only be successful when citizens and police work together and looked forward to building such a partnership in Coatesville.

A Delaware County native, Laufer gained acclaim in 1985 when he confronted and subdued Sylvia Seegrist during a shooting rampage at the Springfield Mall that killed three people and wounded seven others. He currently works as the director of the State Police Bureau of Training and Education. He graduated from the State Police Academy in October 1986, a year after the Springfield Mall incident.